Viable strategy configurations and new product development capability and performance

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify firm groups pursuing different configurations of customer-, entrepreneurial-, and information technology (IT) orientation and to compare their new product development (NPD) capability and NPD performance. Design/methodology/approach – Hierarchical cluster analysis was used on the sample of 156 firms on the basis of their mix of customer-, entrepreneurial-, and IT- orientation. Then, analysis of variance was used to compare the groups’ NPD capability (NPDCAP), NPD process efficiency (NPDPROC), new product effectiveness (NPEFF), and new product financial performance (NPPERF). Findings – Of the seven strategy configurations posited, four emerge and two unexpected configurations are revealed. Overall, firms simultaneously pursuing multiple strategic orientations have higher NPDCAP, NPEFF, and NPPERF. Interestingly, all six strategy groups have equally low levels of NPDPROC. Practical implications – To enhance NPDCAP and NPD performance, managers should consid...